Sunday's season finale of the espionage thriller delivered 2.4-million total viewers at 9 p.m., according to Nielsen. Throw in an encore and the total rises to 2.9 million. That makes it the series' highest-rated episode and night ever.

Showtime's drama with Claire Danes as troubled CIA analyst Carrie Mathison may have recovered from a second season that many critics found wobbly. The finale was up considerably from the 1.9 million who turned up for the Season 3 premiere, when the show was still trying to shake criticisms that it had lost its way creatively.

"Homeland" is Showtime's No. 1 show and the first series on the pay cable network to average more than 7 million total viewers over a week (that of course includes all the repeat airings too).

Meanwhile, "Masters of Sex," Showtime's take on the story of pioneering sex researchers Masters and Johnson, drew 1.2 million for its Season 1 finale. That was up 21% compared with the season premiere.